Question

Okay I'm posting a thread about this issue because I've been looking all over google for a solution to this problem and I can't find one relevant page. As such I've been dealing with the Netgear support staff for a week and they haven't been much help either, so I'll lay out the problem that I'm having with this ?new amazing router" that NetGear just released and see if anyone on here has any suggestions...

So I'm setting up a new Wireless-N router for a client of mine who's always had range problems with their old Wireless-G network. Up until now they always had a Linksys WRT54Gv2 router which, despite its limited range, never gave them ANY problems. All the computers in their home network could always communicate with each other and all the shared printers on the various computers were accessible to all even with all the computers having their firewalls turned on.

So I install the new Netgear WNR834Bv2 Wireless-N router in place of the old Linksys one and everything seems to be going good? great signal, I can access the internet on all the computers right out of the box, BEAUTIFUL!

? but wait? Why can?t any of the computers print anymore? Oh they?re not visible to each other anymore? and why are all the computers no longer visible to each other anymore? Well that?s the 25,000 dollar question that I?ve been spending the past two weeks trying to figure out.

I won?t tell you the 45 steps I?ve gone through up until now to figure out what I have so far, but here?s the relevant information? When I completely disable the Windows Firewall on all the computers, suddenly everything works fine. But when I turn on the firewall with the ?File and Printer Sharing? firewall exception enabled in the Advanced menu, the old Linksys router communicates fine through that but the new Netgear one doesn?t.

What gives? It?s almost like each computer is sending a signal to one port on the Netgear router and the router is now either sending it to another port or doing something screwy with it that makes the other computers think it?s not a File and Printer Sharing related signal and they in-turn ignore it.

As a side note, I could always ping the other machines running the Linksys router through the command prompt even with the firewalls enabled, but now I can?t ping the other machines through the NetGear router unless all the firewalls are completely disabled.

Anyway, that?s my issue. Does anyone know what could be causing that or what I would need to do to create a new exception in the windows firewall in order to listen to the correct NetGear File and Printer Sharing port since it no longer matches the Windows default port for File and Printer Sharing?

All Answers

Issues with Netgeat WNR854t

I have also had problems with the new routers. You think when you buy the latest device off the shelf it would be caught up with current technology.

I found correcting the problem (after exhausting troubleshooting) took a Firmware update to the latest 1.4.23NA. Let me note that the automatic update built into the router never showed an update available.

Solutions (But still problems)

Thanks for the reply! I actually haven't updated this thread since I originally posted my problem. After about 15 more emails back and forth with Netgear, they finally sent me that firmware update you're referring to, which fixed the Windows firewall problem... But I realized (after the fact) that both MacAfee and Norton 360, both still block the Netgear signal but not the Linksys signal.

So in other words, when the only firewall turned on is the Windows firewall, that firmware update has fixed it so all the computers can talk to each other and see each other.

But the moment that any standard security software is enabled (like Norton or MacAfee using their ?default settings?), suddenly nothing can see each other again. *slaps forehead*

I don?t really understand why the Linksys router worked fine and the Netgear one is giving me migraines (and I get the feeling that tech support doesn?t know either). The BEST part is how every time I talk to tech support, I get a new person, and they always start the conversation off with "ahh, there must be a problem with your firewall settings." I just want to shout, "Nooo, there's a problem with YOUUUUR ROUTER since your competitors product worked fine."

I mean it?s not like they won?t make their money back if they plug it in to a computer first to make sure it works just as well as their old products. I would think that would be a fundamental step they take before distributing it, but apparently they just wait for everyone to complain before they fix things? great business model.

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